Mufasa's chance
by elegge
Summary: The Great Kings grant Mufasa another chance at life, but what will happen when he wakes up in a gorge with no memory? I am re-writting this with a different ending and improved writing.
1. What happened that day?

I couldn't open my eyes. I couldn't move my paws. I couldn't lift my head. I heard the sound of hooves running towards me. The sound of hooves stopped and then started again, behind me, running away from me. Then I heard new footsteps, similar to the wildebeest, but softer. I struggled to breathe, the pain in my chest, hurting too much. The footsteps slowly approached my head.

"Dad," a hopeful voice spoke to me. I was a dad? I tried to remember my son but couldn't conjure up an image of him. I couldn't remember his voice, where I was or why I was lying on my side on the hard, rock surface with every muscel in my body hurting.

"Dad, come," the boy said, lifting my face from the ground, "You got to get up." He let go of my face and it fell back onto the ground. If I could have screamed, I would have from the pain I felt as my skull hit the floor.

"Dad, we got to go home," the little boy's paws pushed against my left cheek and he began to cry. I felt sorry for him. I wanted to get up, pull him into my arms and give him a big hug. He ran around my head and pulled on my ear. I still couldn't move. I heard him back off, sniffing.

"Help!" he shouted in fear, running away from me, his voice echoing.

"Somebody," he shouted again.

"Anybody," he said, before sniffing again.

"Help," he whispered, his voice failing. I felt sorry for the kid. He obviously knew me really well, but I couldn't even remember his name or why he was there. I heard him begin to cry and turn around to walk back to me. He lifted up my paw and lay down next to me. It was then that I heard another sound. Lighter footsteps were approaching us, almost silent, but still recognisable.

"Simba," a male's voice spoke, "What have you done?" The cub backed away from me.

"There were wildebeests and he tried to save me…it was an accident…I…I didn't mean for it to happen."

"Of course…of course you didn't. No one ever means for these things to happen. But the king is dead and if it weren't for you he'd still be alive. What will your mother think?"

"What am I going to do?"

"Run away Simba. Run, run away and never return," I heard the little cub run off into the distance before the adult spoke again, "Kill him."

I heard the growling of hyenas. Three sets of hyena paws ran past me, following the boy. I realised by now that I had lost my memory so I tried to piece together what I knew. The little boy, Simba, was my son. I wasn't at my home and neither were the other two. The boy's mother didn't know what had happened to me. I had tried to save my son from wildebeests and he didn't want me dead but, to them, I looked dead. I also figured out that, according to the adult lion sitting next to me, I was the king. Wow, I thought, that's a big thing to forget. I heard the adult lion laugh.

"Dad wouldn't be very proud of you at the moment, would he Mufasa? I managed to kill you and you never saw it coming. Dad should have seen it coming." I heard him walk away from me. I lay, waiting for death, as the day went on. I heard more footsteps after a while. I heard a gasp and a scream of sorrow.

"Mufasa!" I heard a voice call. The female ran over to me, crying worse than Simba had. She lay next to me and buried her head in my mane. She mumbled my name, Mufasa, over and over again, crying and sobbing.

"Sarabi," another lioness's voice said as the group walked towards us, "Sarabi."

"What?" the lioness lying next to me snapped.

"It's just, if you want to talk to me," the other lioness said, lying next to Sarabi, "My husband was killed."

"Thankyou, Sarafina, I understand." The group lay around me, upset. I sensed the male who had killed me was amongst them, too. Suddenly, I heard a scream. It came from above me. The lioness called Sarafina gasped.

"Nala," she whispered, "No, I told you to stay away."

A little female cub was sobbing, running towards me. She was about the same size as Simba, I guessed.

"No!" she screamed, "Simba!"

"Nala," Sarafina whispered, standing up. I heard Nala crash into Sarafina.

"Mum," the cub bellowed, "Mum, where's Simba? Where's my friend? I need to speak to Simba!"

"Simba's gone, sweety. He's joined the great kings of the past." The great kings of the past? I remembered telling someone about them but I couldn't remember who. My memory of telling someone about the great kings had come back!

"No, mum," Nala spoke, aggressively, "He's not gone!" I heard the cub run away from us, calling her friend's name. I was listening to her when a much closer voice made me jump.

"Mufasa, Mufasa please wake up." Sarabi begged. The lioness seemed to care about me as much as Simba had. I wondered if maybe, maybe, this was the voice of my wife.

"The clouds grow dark, we must get back to Pride Rock," I heard the voice of the male lion say. I was beginning to hate that animal.

"Scar," Sarafina said, worried, "He's going to be the king. What if he kicks the cubs out?"

"Calm down Sarafina, he won't kick Na…" Sarabi thought for a second, "What do you mean by, cubs?"

"I haven't told anyone yet but, I'm expecting a cub."

"That's great news!" Sarabi exclaimed.

"Hurry up! Hurry up!" I heard Scar say. The lionesses sighed and stood up, the warmth of their bodies vanishing. No, I thought, don't go.

"Don't worry my love, I'll be back," Sarabi whispered in my ear. I knew then that she was my wife. Then, they left.

I lay on the hard floor as night crept closer, bringing the cold air with it. I tried to grasp onto my memories, so as not to forget more than I had to. I hadn't got a clue what any of the lionesses or cubs looked like, but I knew what a general lion looked like.

I lay there for half the night, too afraid to sleep, when my nose began to get blocked. I was struggling for air. My heart beat picked up. I drew in one more breath and…


	2. Joining the Kings Of The Past

I lay there for half the night, too afraid to sleep, when my nose began to get blocked. I was struggling for air. My heart beat picked up. I drew in one more breath and…

…I opened my mouth to take in the cool air of the evening. I breathed in and out and in and out. I opened my eyes and took a look at my surroundings. The first thing I saw was lots and lots of prints in the sandy, muddy ground. They must have been from the wildebeest, I thought to myself. I saw the muddy paw carrying on and on, before turning a corner. I looked up and saw steep walls of grey rock. A gorge, I thought, how did I end up in a gorge? I slowly got up, the pain in my bones searing through me, and felt something hard collide with my head. I fell back down again and looked back up. There was a cracked tree above me with tiny claw marks on it. Simba must have been holding onto this.

I got up again, more carefully this time, and stood, looking at my surroundings. I could smell the fading scent of blood, probably from the wildebeest. I looked to my left and saw skid marks on the ground. I followed them with my eyes, towards the side of the gorge. There were huge, deep claws marks going all the way to the top of the gorge, embedded in the rock. I limped over to it and put my paw to the wall. I extended my claws and they fit the marks perfectly. I turned around and saw that the large marks on the ground let to the tree I had been lying under. As I limped around the tree, inspecting it and the gorge, I noticed two different prints on the ground, other than the wildebeest ones. Some of them were huge dents in the ground, the same size as my paws, and the others were tiny prints, just visible. They led in the direction of the corner I had seen, the way I heard Simba run. I thought to myself that, if Simba truly was my son, I should follow these marks. Also, I had no idea where I was.

I limped away from the tree, following the footprints. They stopped at a pile of rocks. I could smell his scent and knew that he had been there. I began the slow climb up the mountain or rocks, until I eventually reached the top. Here, Simba's prints started again. I followed them for a few metres, before they turned into one, bigger mark, all the way down a big hill. I sighed and slowly began to climb down the hill. When I reached an edge and realised that there was no way down and that the prints stopped, I knew what Simba must have done. I turned around, lay down and, with my claws gripping tightly to the edge; I lowered myself down, over the maze of thorns. I took three deep breaths before letting go and falling. I landed in a gap in the thorns, the first lucky thing to happen to me, and began to follow the footprints again. They eventually led out into a big desert. It was beginning to get lighter by now, and I was starting to feel the heat of the sun.

I walked for hours, loosing the footprints and the scent of my son. I carried on walking, under the heat of the day. I started to stumble over my feet, falling every few metres. I couldn't remember when I had last had water, but I knew that I was thirsty now. I tripped over my feet again and just lay down. Moments later, I fainted.

I awoke under the shade of a large tree, out of the way of the sun. I groaned a little and felt water splash on my face. I opened my eyes and saw a beautiful green jungle in front of me. Behind me I could hear water. I stood up carefully but, to my surprise, I felt no pain. I turned around and saw a large waterfall in front of me. Drops of water occasionally hit my face, cooling it further. I stepped forward and lay down at the edge of the waterfall. I was sitting on the edge of a large gorge. At the bottom of it, I could see the waterfall hitting the ground.

"Mufasa?" A voice said questioningly from behind me. I turned around again and saw a familiar lion. I knew his face. The back of my mind was crying out, telling me who he was, but I couldn't hear it, "Son?"

"Dad?" I asked aloud. This was my dad, I was sure of it. I was also sure that he had been dead for years.

"I didn't want you to come here for a while yet. It isn't your time. Oh well," he sighed, "Come along. The great kings will see you."

I followed him and he led me to a clearing in the jungle where lions and lionesses, cubs and adults, sat around in a large circle.

"Mufasa!" A dark brown lioness cried out. She had a white spot on her forehead that was unlike anything I had seen before.

"Mum?" I questioned.

"Uru," the lion spoke, "Mufasa appears to have lost his memory. He doesn't remember us."

"No," Uru whispered, "Ahadi, no. My baby has to remember me."

"Mufasa do you remember how you got here?"

"I remember a stampede I think. And I think I have a son who was in it. I also remember a lion. I think he set it up."

"What was his name, sweety?"

"Scar," I said. As I said his name, I remembered part of my cub hood. I remembered playing with another cub. He was brown with a black, hooked nose. We were hunting a butterfly. I jumped off a ledge to catch it and realised there was a larger drop than I had thought. I remember calling to the cub.

"Taka, brother help me." I remembered the cub reaching down and pulling me up. Then I remembered that same cub, Taka, grown up and sitting above me. I remembered pulling myself up and calling to him.

"Scar, brother, help me." I remembered him reaching down, speaking to me, and then throwing me down to the bottom of a gorge.

"He's my brother," I whispered, before fainting.

I woke up later, feeling crowded. I opened my eyes and groaned, my day had been too eventful.

"Mufasa, son, it's okay. Wake up, now, we've decided what we're going to do."

"No!" I heard my mum cry, "Ahadi, let him stay here! Please!" She was begging my dad. I stood up and turned to my dad.

"What do you mean? What are you going to do with me?" The great lion took a step towards me and put a paw on my shoulder.

"Son, as much as we want you here, your son needs you more."

"How will I know what he looks like?"

"You live in him just as I live in you. We are of the same blood." I was confused.

"Honey," Uru said. I turned to her, "When he is an adult, he will look exactly like you."

"How do you know?"

"He looks like you when you were a cub," she told me.

"Now it is time for you to return," my dad said, stepping away from me, "You will have no memory when you wake up."

The last thing I saw was tears falling from their eyes, before there was a loud bang, a flash, and the floor seemed to fall from underneath me.


	3. Allowed Back then Sent Away

I woke up on the edge of a jungle. My mouth was dry and my stomach empty. I had no idea who I was or how I had come to be there. I smelt fresh water and could hear it flowing. Standing up, I realised that I was in pain. I had no cuts or bruises that were visible, but my insides were hurting far worse than I could have imagined. I followed the sound and scent of the water and came to a lake. In front of me was a group of thin waterfalls, their water falling onto some rocks that crossed the lake. I bent down over the edge and saw my reflection. I had a red mane and golden brown fur. I knew what I looked like, but not who I was or where I was.

I stood up after drinking as much as I could. I wondered over to the waterfalls. Carefully, I put my front, left paw onto one of the brown stones. It was a little slippy, but I decided to walk across the lake. Once I was on the other side, I turned right and walked up a steep, narrow path. I ended up above the waterfalls looking at a yellow, sandy clearing. There was a large tree to my right which I lay on and curled up to sleep on.

"Do you think he's dead?" A voice woke me up.

"I don't know, maybe we should find out."

"What if he's not dead?"

"Then we ask him very kindly to move out the way."

"What if he's hungry?"

"Maybe we could tell him where we eat."

"That would be a good idea," I said, opening my eyes to find a meerkat and a warthog staring at me.

"Y…y…you're alive?"

"Barely, but I'd like to know where you eat. I'm starving."

"We…We…We don't taste very nice," the warthog said.

"Far too crunchy, ugh," the meerkat said.

"I'm not planning on eating you two. I just want a zebra."

"We're fresh out of zebra," the meerkat said.

"Any antelope?"

"Nope."

"Hippo?"

"Nu, uh."

"Er, Timon," the warthog said, "Doesn't this seem a bit familiar to you?"

"No, why?"

"Never mind."

"Look, you two obviously aren't going to help me so I'll go off and find something myself." I walked past them and heard them sigh. I carried on walking until I came across a beautiful lioness drinking from a puddle. She was almost pure white and had sparkling blue eyes.

"Hello," I said, gently and friendly. She looked up and spoke to me.

"You look like you've seen better days, old man," she laughed.

"Old? I'm not old, at least, I don't think so."

"What?"

"I've lost my memory and don't know who I am, where I am or where I come from."

"Well I'm sure my pride can look after you until you remember again," she said softly. She turned around and walked away. I followed her. Eventually, we came to a clearing in the jungle and four lionesses ran up to the beautiful lioness.

"Queen Sara, we were so worried."

"You've been gone for so long!"

"What happened?"

"Why did you leave us?"

"Calm down, calm down," Sara said to them, "I found a group of warthogs in the bush and went after them. They managed to get away but I lost you so I decided to carry on chasing them. It's just as well I did because I wouldn't have stopped for a drink and this lion would still be lost in the jungle."

When she mentioned me they all looked at me in shock; they hadn't noticed me before.

"It's almost dark now," Sara said, "We should return to the den." I watched the lionesses walk towards a large stone cave at the other side of the clearing. When they reached it, Sara looked back at me.

"Come on," she called, "You're the only male here. No one will chase you off." I walked towards the den and found ten lionesses all of different shapes, sizes, ages and colours, lying in various places on the floor.

"This is where all the lions that have been kicked out of their prides, or left them, live. I rule over them. There are no males here except you as they prefer to become rogues. We settled down for the night and more lionesses of all ages came and went as the night went on. I looked questioningly at Sara and she whispered to me.

"We have no strict rules. We can come and go whenever we like."

"But everyone was worried when you left."

"That's because it's my job to look after them whilst they're here or if I see them in the jungle. I've taken on that role happily."

"Oh, okay."

"Get some sleep now. You must be tired." I smiled and rested my head on my paws.

The next morning, Sara took me for a tour of some of the jungle. Along the way, we met many inhabitants who would have normally been our meal but, as Sara was not hungry, they were happy to see her. The way each and every animal of each and every species stopped to see Sara reminded me of someone, but I couldn't remember who. As the day went on, I found myself liking Sara more and more. Each time she glanced at me I felt my heart fly. Once we had been around part of the jungle, we decided to head back to the clearing. I lay in a spot next to a lake where the sun was shining through a gap in the trees.

"Some lionesses are going on a hunt. If they bring back some food, would you like some?"

"That would be great," I told her. She lay down next to me.

"I was wondering," she began, "It can get a bit lonely around here and I'd love to have someone to confide in. I was wondering, well, erm, well, would you like to be the king?" I was surprised that she had asked me.

"Of course," I told her.

"It would involve us becoming married." When she said that I felt like I was the happiest lion in the world, except that there was one part of my brain shouting at me, telling me not to marry her.

"Are you asking to marry me?"

"I guess so," she said.

"I will."

"You will what?"

"I will marry you!" Sara smiled and ran away from me, towards a group of lionesses who immediately started giggling and looking at me. I felt embarrassed and decided to walk inside the, well, my den. I was out of view of the lionesses and finally had the chance to think about what had happened.

As I sat there, thinking, a memory came back to me. I was a cub. I was sitting on a golden lion's back. His mane was dusty brown and he was huge compared to me. He was talking to me.

"Son, whenever you feel alone, or scarred, just remember that the Great Kings will always be up there, and so will I." I remembered looking up at the sky and seeing the stars twinkle.

I looked outside the cave at the darkening sky. I saw the stars twinkling, just as they had done in my memory.

"Have I done the right thing, father?" I asked, staring at the sky. Sara walked into the cave and lay next to me.

"Are you okay?" she asked me.

"I'm fine, I'm just thinking. Part of my memory's come back."  
"What happened?"

"My father told me that the Great Kings were the stars and that he would be one of them."

"I've heard of the Great Kings of the Past."

"Who are they?"

"Well, when I was a cub I travelled a lot and we came across this one pride that told me about the great kings for the first time. They're all the kings of the past who rule over the living. Other lions go to the heavens with them, but the great kings rule there."

"Didn't your mother tell you about them?"

"No. We didn't have time for that sort of thing. We spent most of our time wondering around, trying to find a pride of our own."

"Well you have one now," I told her, laying my head on my paws. She smiled and stood up.

"The hunt's back. Are you hungry?"

"Starving," I told her. She stepped outside the cave. A moment later she walked back in with two large, red coloured legs. I sniffed it nervously as she lay down and began to eat.

"What is this?" I asked her.

"Oh, sorry, I forget that some prides haven't got the same food as us. This is warthog."

"You eat warthog?" I asked her, remembering the warthog and meerkat I had seen earlier.

"Yes," she said, worried, "Is that a problem?"

"No, I just didn't know that they tasted nice."

"Well they do. Dig in!"

I picked at the leg with my teeth, barely touching the meat. I looked outside and saw all of the other lionesses eating meat and their cubs playing with some of the pieces.

"Who's the father of all the cubs?" I asked Sara, confused at the fact that there was no pride leader.

"Rogues," she said, her mouth full of meat. I nodded my head and began to eat the warthog. It tasted okay. It was a bit chewy, but that was to be expected. I slept well that night, Sara at my side. I breathed in and out, taking in her scent as well as the scent of the pride.

Over the next few months I began to settle into the pride. I learnt the names of most of the members and spent most of my day with Sara or with the huntress' cubs. I had a strange feeling that Sara was watching me as I let them climb over me, biting my tail and mane. I would often look over at her to find her smiling and deep in thought.

One day I decided to have a different routine. I left one of the lionesses in charge of the cubs and went for a walk around the jungle. With my stomach full and my thirst quenched, I could truly look at the beauty of the magical place. I climbed a large hill and lay atop it, looking over the jungle. I could see the clearing where our pride stayed, over to my left and on my right I could see a large river with a log crossing it.

As I was watching the log a small figure appeared on it. I squinted my eyes and barely made out the shape of a meerkat. Then a larger figure appeared. It was a warthog, strolling along behind the meerkat. My thoughts immediately went back to the pair I had seen many months ago, when I had looked and felt old and crippled. My mane was now growing brightly and my fur was getting some colour back. The aches were now vanishing and I felt renewed strength in my bones.

I then saw something I thought I'd never see. A teenaged golden brown lion appeared on the log, behind the others. He wasn't chasing them, but merely strolling along behind them. This confused me as the only time I had seen a lion and a warthog together was when the warthog was either dead or about to die. I got up and decided to follow the three animals. I ran to the lake I had seen them jump into and they were getting out when I arrived. I hid behind a tree and watched them.

"See, Timon, I'll always beat you at getting to the shore," the lion told the meerkat. Timon, I thought, that was the name of the meerkat I had seen before. The pair had obviously found another friend to add to their group.

"Yeah, well I wasn't trying," Timon said, "Pumbaa, should we have a re match?" I was about to step out from behind the tree and speak to them when the warthog said something that made me stop.

"Simba won fair and square."

Simba, I thought, Simba, where did I know that name from?

"Simba?" I said out loud to myself. Suddenly an image appeared in my head. The three began to walk away and I would have stopped them if it wasn't for my second memory since I had arrived at the jungle. I felt a weight on my back. I was looking up at the night sky.

"Simba," I said, "Let me tell you something my father told me. Look at the stars. The great kings of the past look down on us from those stars. So, whenever you feel alone, or afraid, just remember that those kings will always be there to guide you…and so will I."

"Thanks, dad, I love you."

"I love you to son."

It was only a short memory but it surprised me.

"Dad?" I asked myself out loud, "I'm a dad?" I had a son called Simba who I had seen only seconds ago, playing with a warthog and a meerkat. Was my son really low enough to hang around with what he should be eating? No, I told myself, don't think like that; Simba was my son and I should guide him, just as I had told him.

"Simba!" I shouted, "Simba! Wait for me Simba!" I ran through the gap in the trees where he had walked through, but I couldn't see him. I carried on running, but found no trace of my son anywhere. I slowly walked back to my den. Before I had lost my memory I had a pride, a son and probably a wife. The voice in my head had been trying to tell me this. I sighed at my stupidity. When I arrived at the den, Sara wasn't in sight. I walked over to Li-Li, the lioness babysitting the cubs.

"Li-Li, do you know where Sara is?" I asked her.

"She's in the den. She told me to send you in to see her."

I thanked Li-Li and walked towards the cave. I saw Sara lying in the middle of it, staring at the ground. She seemed upset and I didn't know what might be wrong.

"Milo," she said, looking up at me, "You've got to go away for a week."

"Why?" I asked her, worried.

"It's tradition," she said, holding back tears. I walked over to her.

"Hey," I said, "Hey. Don't cry. I'll go but I'll be back in a week."

"Thank you," she said, "This would have been harder if you refused."

"Well, goodbye," I said.

"Bye," she said, beginning to cry. I turned around, ran out of the cave, past Li-Li, and into the jungle. I had to find Simba this week and ask him what had happened to me.


	4. Good then Bad

I wondered through the jungle for days, becoming more and more lost in the thickness of the bush. Memories of running through thistles sniffing the air kept on coming to my mind, but I didn't understand what they meant. I tried to find Simba or one of his friends, but I had no luck. The teenage lion and his companions were no where to be seen. I fell asleep in clearings every night and just walked around all day.

One night I lay, thinking of Sara, when the image of a beautiful lioness came into my head. I didn't recognise her and felt no care for her when I saw her, but I was sure this was a memory. She was a dusty brown colour and was standing in front of a large, oddly shaped, rock formation. She was smiling at me. I fell asleep with this image in my mind.

When it was time for me to return, I had no idea where I was. I climbed a large hill and looked down on the jungle. I was looking down when I heard someone approach me from behind.

"Simba, that's not you, is it?"

"Simba!" I spun around, surprised that the name of the lion I had been searching for had just been mentioned. I recognised the warthog that the meerkat was normally with.

"You know Simba?" He asked, a little nervous.

"Yeah, well, I think I do."

"What do you mean?"

"I've lost my memory but parts of it come back occasionally. I remember speaking to a cub called Simba who called me dad when I last saw the lion that you hang around with."

"Well, you look a lot like him, but, I, erm…You're one of Sara's group now, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"I've got to go," he said quickly, before running away from me. It was only later that I realised that he must know that we eat warthogs. I shrugged, knowing that I'd have plenty of time later to search for Simba, once Sara knew about him, and turned back towards the jungle. I spotted the clearing easily now and headed for home. When I got back, I was met by Sambi, a lovely but shy dark brown lioness. She smiled at me, walking forward with her head down and ears back, out of respect.

"Hello, Sambi," I said, greeting her with a quick hug. I looked around at the group of happy lionesses, curiously, "Where's Sara?"

Sambi giggled and Li-Li stood up to speak to me.

"She's inside the den."

"Is she okay?" I asked, worried.

"Okay's an understatement," teenaged Lotus, a cheeky lioness, told me. I nervously walked towards the den, all eyes on me and took a breath before stepping around the side of the cave. This would be the time I would tell Sara about my child and that I used to have another wife.

"Leave them alone!" I heard Li-Li shout from outside and I felt the eyes of the pride stop staring at me. The sight I saw when I walked in completely shocked me. My wife, Sara, was asleep, lying on her side. She was completely healthy. I was glad to see this, but I was a little surprised to see two tiny bundles of fluff curled up beside her. Startled, I stepped towards her, moving quietly. I lay down, facing her, and licked her nose. She blinked and looked up sleepily.

"What?" she mumbled.

"Sara, it's me, Milo," I whispered.

"Milo? Milo! Oh my god, I've missed you so much. I was worried every day and thought the worst had happened!"

"Would I really let that happen to me when my wife and two cubs were waiting for me?"

"You knew?"

"Not a clue."

She smiled and got up from her side so that she could lie facing me.

"I've given them name's. Is that okay?"

"As long as you like them, I'm fine with it."

"The golden brown one with the little tuft of cream hair is called Athadan. He's the youngest one. Kishak, she's the other one, the dark brown one, she's going to be the queen."

"Kishak and Athadan, those names suit them both really well. How long ago were they born?"

"This morning."

"Really!? Happy birthday cubs."

Sara laughed.

"It's good to have you home, Milo."

"It's good to be home."

I spent that night lying next to Sara with our cubs in between us. Over the next few weeks they grew and grew. Their personalities started showing, too. Kishak loved play fighting and was very clever. She was the best choice for queen, which was good. Athadan was happy to just trot along behind her and do what she did. He looked up to her and loved trying to beat her. He didn't like us setting boundaries for him and would often go off on his own, after persuading Kishak to lead the way.

"Would you like to give them the Great Kings of the Past talk?" Sara asked me one evening, when the cubs had reached six months of age.

"Are you sure? I don't want to take that privilege away from you."

"I'm positive. Anyway, you know it all somewhere deep down inside. Also, it's tradition for the king to give the cubs the Great Kings talk."

"Okay," I said before shouting to the cubs, "Athadan, Kishak, come here. Tonight I'm going to take you somewhere special."

"Okay, dad!" Kishak called.

"Coming!" Athadan called after her. They ran over to me, fighting to get to me first. I smiled down at them. It had been a few months since I had thought about Simba, but this made me think about him again. What was he like? Did he want to always be with me? Did he have any brothers or sisters? Was he friendly or stubborn or unkind? No, I told myself, put the past behind you. Simba was my child and I was probably very happy with him but now I have two other children and Simba has his friends.

Athadan followed me along the paths that I walked whilst Kishak ran ahead, looking back every now and then to make sure we were still there. Eventually we came to a clearing in the jungle where you could see the moon and the stars above your head. At this time of the day, it seemed like a magical place, where anything was possible. I saw a small puddle in the ground and lay down in front of it.

"Kids, come over here," I said in a deep, wise voice that they had never heard me use before. They ran over to me. Kishak sat on my mane and Athadan by my side. As I began to speak, parts of my memory started coming back. I told them about the great kings and then I carried on. I told them about how my brother and I had grown up as they had, happy and playful, until my father had hit my brother, forcing him to change his name to Scar. I told them how Scar planned the stampede with Simba as bait and I told them how I had woken up after everyone had left and tried to follow him but ended up here. I told them that I thought he was here too. At the end of my speech Kishak was the first to speak.

"You don't love us then?"

"What's makes you say that?"

"You have another home, another wife and another kid. You don't love us."

"I love you and I love your mother," I told them, "I woke up in the desert with no memory and until now, I have lived that way. As I was speaking to you here, I remembered."

"Do you have an amazing kingdom?" Athadan asked me.

"Yes," I told him, "And right in the middle of it is a large pointy rock that you can see for miles around."

"You're making that up," Kishak protested.

"No I'm not. If I ever get the chance, I'll take you there."

"Dad, is your real name Milo? You told us that mum and you just called you that because you can't remember your name."

"My name is Mufasa."

"Wow, dad, your name's so cool!"

"Thanks," I said, smiling at Kishak, "And now, we go home."

"Home," the cubs announced. We slowly walked home, the cubs playing in front of me. I memorised every name and every picture my memory showed me. It seemed like I could memorise my whole life. I smiled, I was very lucky that we had gone to talk about the Kings.

"Sara," I called as we came into the clearing, "Sara?" I immediately knew something was wrong. Not only did my instincts tell me, but the scene I met reminded me of something I had witnessed. I had heard it, not seen it, down in the gorge when I had 'died'. The lionesses were gathered in a circle, crying and leaning against each other.

"Dad?" Kishak asked nervously.

"Kishak, Athadan, stay here please," I told them, walking over to the group.

"Milo!" Li-Li cried out in pain, "There were leopards, five of them, we tried to stop them but the hunters were gone and the cubs couldn't do anything."

"It's okay, Li-Li, calm down. What happened?"

"Sara!"

"Sara?" I pushed through the lionesses and on the ground I saw a body I knew well. A mix of near white cream fur and pure red blood was painted over Sara and the ground she lay on, "No!" I cried out in pain for the lioness lying on the floor.

"Milo?"

"It's Mufasa!"

"You remembered?"

"Yes. With Sara dead, I have no reason to stay here. I will go back to my old home and take over Scar's rule. I am going to take my cubs and any lionesses that want to come. From what I remember, it is a beautiful land, more lush and green than most places I've known."

"I'll come. My sister, my best friend, is now dead," Li-Li said, "I have no reason to stay here."

"I'll come too," Sambi said, "And so will my cubs."

More and more lionesses volunteered until the whole pride decided to follow me. We set off at midnight, running the whole way. Half way there we say a figure running along. The pride was faster that it, so we soon caught up with it.

"Mufasa?" It asked, surprised, "You're alive, too?"

"Rafiki?"


	5. The End Of Part 1

"Mufasa, is it really you?"

"Rafiki, it's me. What're you doing here?"

"Simba is alive! He didn't die in the stampede which…you…died…in…"

"I was just knocked out. I lost my memory. Tonight I remembered everything whilst talking to my cubs."

"Your cubs?"

"Yes, my cubs. For the past year or so I've had no memory. Of course I'd start a new life."

"Who's the mother of them?" Kishak and Athadan both looked at the ground and I saw tears fall from their eyes. I saw Rafiki see them too and his jaw dropped, "I'm so sorry, Mufasa. This must be terrible for you, but you still have a wife at Pride Rock."

"I know," I sighed, "But I still love Sara too."

"We'll think about it later but, for now, we must go. Your son is about to fight your brother."

"And I shall join him," I said, confidently, "He tried to kill me. I want answers."

"Then let us go!"

"Let us go!"

We walked and walked through the desert for days.

"Dad," Kishak complained, "It's too hot!"

"Dad," Athadan complained, "I'm thirsty!"

"It's okay," Rafiki told them, "When the light is on the horizon, then we shall find shade and water."

"What's he saying dad?" Athadan asked me. I was about to tell him that I didn't know when Kishak started speaking.

"He means that when the sun next rises we shall find trees and a water hole or lake. He means that in the next twenty four hours, at some point, we will be in the Pride lands."

"You have a wise daughter," Rafiki told me as I closed my open mouth, "She will become a great queen."

I watched Kishak run ahead, smile on her face. I also noticed Athadan slow down, depression clear.

"Brighten up, Athadan," I told him, "He will become a great prince."

"But I'll never be the king," he said.

"Maybe not, but only because of the order you were born in. If you were the first born, you would have been a great, wise king."

"Do you really think so, dad?"

"I know so." Athadan smiled and ran off to join Kishak.

"Well done, Mufasa," Rafiki said.

We continued walking until I began to feel the air get cooler.

"Dad, dad, there's grass over there," my cubs shouted out. I looked beyond them and, sure enough, we were close to the grass. In the distance I could see a large tree and, even further back than that, I saw a grey pointed formation.

"My tree," Rafiki sighed, smiling at the sight.

"Pride Rock," I whispered, smiling like Rafiki. We stepped onto the grass marking the end of the desert and found, more desert/

"What happened to the beautiful kingdom, dad?" Kishak teased.

"Scar is what happened," Rafiki answered for me, "He's your father's brother. He became king when he thought Mufasa was dead and let the hyenas into the pridelands."

"Why is that a problem?" Athadan asked. My cubs had never met hyenas before.

"Hyenas to them are like leopards to us," Lotus said, "You can never turn your back on them."

"Oh."

"The hyenas and Scar together did this."

"My own brother?"

"He did push you off a cliff," Rafiki reminded me.

"He doesn't deserve this punishment from dad though."

"Noble as you always were, Mufasa, this is the way it is," he told me. I sighed and we headed towards pride rock, "When you get there, do not show yourselves. Wait until you find out their strengths."

"Thank you, my friend," I gave Rafiki a quick hug before he ran off to his tree.

My pride, my cubs and I continued on our way to pride rock. It was covered in hyenas and we had to hide behind a rock to make sure we weren't seen.

"Sarabi," I heard Scar call. I gasped as I saw my beautiful wife. It felt like seeing her for the first time. She walked through the hyenas as if they were garbage, ignoring them as they snarled and growled at her. She held her head up high as walked up Pride Rock, towards Scar.

"Where are your hunting parties? They're not doing their job," Scar growled.

"Scar, there is nothing left, it's over."

"No, you're just not looking hard enough."

"We have only one choice, we must leave pride rock."

"We're not going anywhere."

"Then you have sentenced us to death."

"So be it."

"You can't do that."

"I am the king, I can do whatever I want."

"If you were half the king Mufasa was…"

"I'm ten times the king Mufasa was!" Scar shouted, hitting her face with her paw. She went flying across the rock face and a male lion with a red mane jumped up onto a large boulder and roared. He didn't notice me and I stared at him in confusion.

"Mufasa? No, it can't be, your dead," I watched Scar speak as the lion ran down to Sarabi. He nudged her head and she opened her eyes.

"Mufasa?" she whispered.

"No, it's me," he said. Very helpful, I thought.

"Simba?" she asked, astonished, "You're alive? How can that be?"

"It doesn't matter, I'm home." Simba, my son, was a few paces from me. I remembered him as a cub but, just like my memory of Sarabi, it was faded.

"Simba? Simba…" he chuckled, "I'm a little surprised to see you, alive," he growled the last word and I saw three hyenas hide behind a rock.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't rip you apart," Simba said, walked towards my brother.

"Oh, Simba, you must understand, the pressures of ruling a kingdom…"

"Are no longer yours, step down Scar." Scar laughed nervously, pressed against the cliff face.

"Oh, well I would, naturally, however, there is one little problem. You see them…?" He asked, pointing to his loyal hyena subject, "They think I'm king."

"Well we don't," I heard a lioness say from behind me, "Simba's the rightful king." I saw a small group of lionesses, about a third the size of my pride, standing next to Sarabi, helping her up.

"The choice is yours, Scar, either step down…or fight," Simba said.

"Oh, Simba, must this all end in violence," Scar said, walking around my son, towards the lionesses, "I'd hate to be responsible for the dead of a family member. Wouldn't you agree, Simba?"

"That won't work, Scar, I've put it behind me."

"But what about your faithful subjects, have they put it behind them?"

"Simba, what is he talking about?" The lioness asked him.

"Ah, so you haven't told them your little secret," Scar said, circling my son, "Well, Simba, now's your chance to tell them. Tell them who is responsible for Mufasa's death." Sarabi and the other lionesses looked shocked, staring at Simba. That's when I realised that Scar was blaming Simba for my "death" when he had set it up. Simba had lived all these years believing that he had killed me. I jumped out from behind the rock with new found strength, landing in front of Simba.

"No one," I said. The lionesses gasped as I walked towards Scar.

"Mufasa?" He gasped, "No, leave me alone."

"Liar," I snarled.

"I…I…I don't know what you mean," he said, laughing nervously again.

"You've taught my son to believe a lie for years."

"Dad?" Simba said from behind me, shocked. I nodded my head but kept my eyes on my brother.

"I don't know what you mean."

"My son believed he killed me in the gorge when you were the one to set up the stampede. Admit it."

"Fine, I tried to kill you but it didn't work. Unluckily, I have more hyenas than you do lions and they've had more food than your lionesses."

"What you don't realise is that the fall into the gorge made me loose my memory. Instead of coming straight here, I followed the first scent I could, that was Simba's and it led me to a jungle, where I found a pride. The jungle's rich with food, unlike this place. What you also don't realise is that my new pride is three times bigger than this one and probably three times stronger and they'd fight to the death for me."

"They're not here."

"Oh, really?" I asked him, as the pride jumped out from behind various rocks and boulders. Every member, except Sara, was there, including the cubs and the elderly, ready to fight for me. Scar's jaw dropped as he took in the new sight.

"As my son said, either stand down…or fight," I said as Simba walked up to me.

"I'll be going now," Scar said, running away from pride rock.

"Father?" Simba asked, staring at me. I smiled at him and he jumped at me, grinning from ear to ear.

"You've grown since I last saw you," I told him.

"You're more alive than when I last saw you," he said.

"How did you live?" Sarabi asked, walking towards me, "We saw you in the gorge."

"I was able to hear you, I just couldn't move," I told her, "And I had no memory."

"How did you find your way here and know where to go?"

"Well when I was in the jungle, I found a mate," I said and she looked at the floor, tears in her eyes, "But I couldn't remember this place. I had two cubs and I was telling them about the great kings when my memory came back. I went home to tell Sara, my mate, but she had been attacked and killed by leopards."

"I'm so sorry," Sarabi said, tears in her eyes, not daring to step closer to me.

"But I remembered you and the life I had with you, so I came back." She looked up at me, smiling. I licked her cheek and walked over to Athadan and Kishak, who were curled up next to each other, terrified that they would know be forgotten.

"Simba, meet your brother, Athadan, and your sister, Kishak." Simba smiled at them.

"Does that mean I'm not going to be queen?" Kishak asked me.

"Simba?"

"Kishak looks like she'd make a better queen than I would king. She's grown up learning about that and I've grown up learning how to forget it."

"Yay!" She shouted, running at Simba. I turned around and saw Rafiki smiling at me.

"It is time to reclaim your place in the circle of life," he told me, pointing at the point of the rock. I slowly walked up it, taking my time as rain began to fall. I got to the top and looked at the sky. A parting opened in the clouds and I saw the face of my father, Ahadi. He was smiling down at me. I smiled back at him before taking a deep breath and roaring loudly. All the lionesses roared with me. It was then that I knew that this was where I belonged, with my wife, Sarabi, my sons, Simba and Athadan, and my daughter, the future queen, Kishak. I looked down and saw the younger of the three on top of Simba's head, all of them looking up at me. I smiled at them and they smiled back. Life would be easy and sweet from now on.


End file.
